In March, Imam Jamil Abdullah al-Amin was convicted of killing
an Atlanta police officer and sentenced to life in prison.
The controversy surrounding his conviction came to UCLA
Wednesday night in the form of a speaker presentation. Amir Abdel
Malik Ali, a Muslim leader and activist, protested Jamil’s
innocence and victimization by the government.
The speech was sponsored by the Muslim Student Association at
UCLA and by its parent organization, MSA West. Approximately 70
students attended the event, most of whom were MSA members.
Imam Jamil was an activist during the civil rights movement.
After a stint in prison, he converted to Islam and changed his name
from H. Rap Brown to Imam Jamil.
He was convicted of killing Ricky Kinchen and wounding his
partner while they attempted to serve him an arrest warrant.
Although he was found guilty, some of the evidence was determined
to be conflicting.
MSA said the presentation was designed to encourage people to
keep an open mind.
“The purpose is to raise awareness of his trial and who he
is and why he is innocent,” said Yousef Tajsar, a third-year
political sciences student and the outreach coordinator for
MSA.
Ali called Jamil a martyr for the Muslim community while he
spoke on both Jamil’s trial and world events including Sept.
11, 2001 and the looming chance of a war with Iraq.
Ali elaborated on the interconnectedness of world issues and
what he sees as a government vendetta against Muslims.
“The war on terrorism is a war on Islam,” he
said.
He concluded his speech by imploring his audience to not ignore
events in the Middle East, especially in Iraq and Palestine.
“It’s a reminder for a lot of people,” Reem
Salahi, a fourth-year international development studies student and
an assistant director with MSA, said of the speech.
“It’s refocusing on reasons why we’re here,
reasons why we’re struggling.”
Several people expressed opposition to a speaker who asserted
the innocence of a sentenced killer.
Eight Bruin Republicans staged a silent protest for half the
speech, holding signs that read, “Don’t Defend a
Killer,” and, “Justice for Ricky Kinchen.”
“There’s a lot of better people out there (to talk
about),” said Andrew Jones, chair of the Bruin Republicans.
“He’s no martyr.”
Muhammad Mertaban, the president of the MSA and a fourth-year
psychology and French student, brushed off the Bruin
Republicans’ protest as uninformed and
“immature.”
“They came to humiliate themselves,” he said.
Jones responded by accusing the speaker of being
“racist” and evasive, saying that Abdel talked about
“everything but what was supposed to be talked about,”
referring to the issue of Jamil’s guilt or innocence.
Imam Jamil is currently in Alabama facing federal charges on
fleeing the state. An appeals process was occurring in Georgia when
prosecutors moved him to Alabama.